New Atlantic 85 class lifeboat arrives at Lough Swilly RNLI
- Pat Nolan
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Thursday 9 April 2026
A new Atlantic 85 class lifeboat has gone on service at Lough Swilly RNLI in County Donegal.
The lifeboat, which arrived at the Buncrana lifeboat station last night (Wednesday 8 April), replaces the Minnie and Ernest George Barry, which has been used to save lives at sea off the Inishowen peninsula since 2007.
Volunteer lifeboat crew completed familiarisation training last night, with their first exercise on the Davdot.
The new lifeboat has been funded by English couple Dorothy and David Robinson, who live in Surrey. The couple have been generously supporting the RNLI’s lifeboats and shore works since 2003, including most recently providing a new bunkroom for the crew at Wandsworth Riverside Lifeboat Station in London and now the new Atlantic 85 class lifeboat which the Irish Coast Guard has officially declared a search and rescue asset at Lough Swilly RNLI.
Dorothy Robinson was first inspired to support the charity by her late parents: ‘My father was a lieutenant commander serving on the destroyer, the Indefatigable, during World War Two,’ she explains. ‘My mother used to help the RNLI collect donations on Scarborough seafront where they had retired there. We both admire the dedication of all the staff and volunteers in the RNLI and have tried to repay that by contributing to their lifeboat stations.’
The Davdot will be officially named at a special naming ceremony and service of dedication at Lough Swilly RNLI in the near future.
Meanwhile, in its almost 19 years at Lough Swilly RNLI, the Minnie and Ernest George Barry launched 265 times, with its volunteer lifeboat crews rescuing 233 people, five of whom were lives saved.
The Atlantic 85 lifeboat is one of the fastest in the RNLI’s fleet with a top speed of 35 knots. The lifeboat design allows room for four crew members and is powered by two 115 horsepower engines. The radar allows the crew to operate effectively in poor visibility and it also comes with VHF direction-finding equipment.
The lifeboat has a manually operated self-righting mechanism which combined with inversion-proofed engines keeps the lifeboat operational even after capsize. The lifeboat can also be beached in an emergency without causing damage to its engines or steering gear.
The Atlantic 85 which was introduced to the RNLI fleet in 2005, carries a full suite of communication and electronic navigation aids, as well as a searchlight, night-vision equipment and flares for night-time operations.
Speaking following the arrival of the new lifeboat, Joe Joyce, Lough Swilly RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager said: ‘We are extremely grateful to Dorothy and David for their generous donation which has funded our new lifeboat. As we welcome a new lifeboat, there is also a sense of nostalgia among us today too as we bid a fond farewell to the Minnie and Ernest George Barry which provided us with nearly two decades of reliable service. During its time here at Lough Swilly, the Minnie and Ernest George Barry saved lives and brought many more people safely to shore and we hope the donor’s family will be just as proud as we are, of its many achievements.
‘We are looking forward to this new chapter and to being the custodians of the Davdot, which will allow our volunteers to go on to rescue and save many more lives in the years to come.’
